1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to an anaerobic digestion system including one or more digesters. More specifically, the present disclosure is directed to a clarifier for pretreatment processing of biomaterials to improve anaerobic digestion, a batch reactor for digesting the processed biomaterials, and a digester. The present disclosure also provides for an active monitoring system with dynamic material and gas flow control.
2. Background of Related Art
Anaerobic digestion is the breakdown of organic material by microorganisms in the absence of oxygen and has been used for the processing and treatment of primarily organic waste to produce non-hazardous, and sometimes beneficial, products.
The microbiology of anaerobic digestion can be generally described as comprising three broad trophic groups, which digest organic materials in sequence. The first group, the hydrolytic and fermentative bacteria, contains both obligate and facultative anaerobes, and removes small amounts of oxygen that may be introduced into the digester with the waste influent. By hydrolysis, this group initially breaks down the more complex molecules (e.g., cellulosics, starch, proteins, lipids, etc.) into smaller units (e.g., amino acids, sugars, and fatty acids). Then, by a process of acidification, this group uses these smaller compounds to produce formate, acetate, propionate, butyrate, hydrogen, and carbon dioxide. These acidic products are then available for the next trophic level. In many digesters, the rate-limiting step is the hydrolysis of complex molecules, particularly the polysaccharides.
The second trophic group comprises hydrogen-producing acetogenic bacteria or proton-reducing bacteria. By a process of acetification, this group makes acetate from compounds such as fatty acids, butyrate, formate, and propionate.
The third trophic group comprises the methanogenic bacteria, which convert compounds such as acetate into methane gas and carbon dioxide in a process called methanogenesis.
Conventional anaerobic digestion takes place within one or more digesters as the organic material is processed by the microorganisms described above. There is a continual need to provide for more efficient anaerobic digestion systems.